My First Telescope Observation Certificate

Messier Marathon Participation Certificate

If you do a Messier Marathon, or if you are leading one for your astronomy club or community, we have provided a certificate to commemorate that accomplishment. A Messier Marathon is an event that attempts to see all 110 objects on Messier's list in one night. The first object is seen in evening twilight and the last object is seen in morning twilight.

The PDF certificate of participation is available here. (print, copy and fill in the blanks)

The best time to do a Messier Marathon is mid-March to early April. It is best to do it when the moon is New, and obviously weekends are preferred. This list shows the preferred weekend for years to come:

Herschel Hustle Participation Certificate

We are all familiar with the Messier Marathon, but there are other challenges out there awaiting those who are willing to make the effort. Sky and Telescope Magazine came up with the idea and called it the Herschel Sprint. This is our take on it.

William Herschel was an amazing astronomer. He was able to use relatively good optics, but the mechanics of his telescopes was limited by today's standards. With his telescope, scanning only in declination, we was able to observe objects as they crossed his meridian. The goal of this challenge is to relive one special night when he discovered 74 objects in one night. To truly experience the event, use an eyepiece with a 15 to 20 arc-minute field and about 150 power. Once on the meridian, the purists will switch to manual telescope operation, only changing the declination as time progresses. To see them all will require a large telescope (14-inches or larger). Select a date when the first object transits about an hour after sunset.

Information on the list for the Herschel Hustle are located on this web page.
The Herschel Hustle Participation Certificate is available here. (print, copy and fill in the blanks)
The Astornomical League's Herschel Society Information web page is located here.